Ninety-one: short film

WOAH.....WAY TOO TARDY!

2011-02-24T10:06:00.000-08:00

It has been far too long since I have posted here so I will give you all a run down of what is new and exciting - lots!!
- Nintey-one has, as I think you all know, enjoyed a small run but a good run at 3 film festivals. And great festivals too boot - Newport Beach, Indy and Rhode Island.
- Finally finished the latest short before I headed into a 5 month job. Little Larry is now being submitted to various festivals and I eagerly await news.
Little Larry - is a 5 min. dramedy - a girl wakes up from an all-nighter to find a stranger in her bed - what happened, how did he get there?? It was written by my good friend Elliot Kotek (who will be reporting this weekend from the red carpet of the Spirit Awards). We met at the Bahamas Int. Film Festival a few years back with my first film moment and became fast friends.
- I wrapped up working on the 2nd season of Rookie Blue about a month ago. Once again fun had by all. This season is better than the first.
- I played hooky from the ole day job to take on my first paid directing gig!! I directed 3 episodes of a new Teletoon / Cookie Jar series called Mudpit. Think Hanna Montana but WAY cooler! I was really excited to be offered this amazing opportunity. The awesome producer Bruce Kalish was a huge supporter and promoter of mine and I will be forever grateful for his belief. I had a GREAT time and I am really excited to see the results! It is a half animation and half live action TV show with great music by very talented musicians and actors. So fun!
- And the final bit of good news (for now) as if this wasn't enough.....I have optioned a book called Nellcott Is My Darling and am developing the screen play with the talented author of said book Golda Fried. We will have more exciting updates soon. But in the meantime you can follow our progress on twitter: @NellcottMovie. You will find a link to the book site on twitter too. Check it out.

So that's it in a nut shell...I continue to be inspired and excited about the future.
Hope you do too!

Jillx

Rhode Island International Film Festival

2010-08-10T16:06:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of RIIFF and sadly I am not there. A few year back my first film 'moment' screened there and it was one of the best festivals I attended. I met some really great filmmakers that ended up becoming friends, went to some fun parties, shared conversation with the wonderful hosts and volunteers at the festival. As you can tell I am disappointed to not be going. Sigh.

However for those of you fine folks that happen to be in the area you can catch 'ninety-one' on Sunday August 15th at 12:30pm. We open the block and screen with two other films 'Micky Bader (Bathing Micky)' a short doc by Frida Kempff from Sweden/Denmark and a Feature doc called Holy Wars by Stephen Marshall from USA/Iran/Pakistan/UK. An eclectic group but one I am honored to be a part of as the two other filmmakers are very accomplished.

http://www.film-festival.org/index07A.htm

Enjoy the festival!

Other news:
I am doing my online for the new short 'Little Larry' tomorrow. We did our sound mix last Thursday. Sound mixes are curious things to me. You can literally drive yourself crazy. Every time you listen to the mix and see you film you hear something different.
In an attempt to learn more about the process I have been sitting in, when I can, on the SCORE: A Hockey Musical sound mix. It has been good to just sit, listen, learn and realize I am getting there and maybe it's not so different from what I understand. Phew. Of course SCORE has more bells and whistles to play with being a feature and all, so it is interesting to watch.
Another great part of my day tomorrow is being able to sit in a movie theater to watch SCORE and listen to the mix in a theater and hear the comments before Mike McGowan and the sound gang go back and make the final tweeks for the big screening to open TIFF.

Will report back in a few days...

PS - look at me - I finally got a link right! WooHoo

Indianapolis International Film Fest

2010-07-20T17:59:00.000-07:00

So today was our first screening at Indy and sadly I was not there to share the film with an audience but I have heard a report back and it's all good news. Phew.

It is always hard to have your film screen and not be able to participate. There is nothing like the fear or thrill of watching an audience view your film. You hope that they react in to the right moments - laugh, cry, scream, gasp.

But alas this time I will have to be happy with hearing the reviews.

Till the next time.....and don't forget we are screening again at Indy on Thursday July 22nd at 3:15pm.

Thanks!
Jill

Part 2

2010-07-05T13:12:00.001-07:00

http://www.nsi-canada.ca/more_lessons_from_canadian_filmmakers.aspx

Above is part 2 of the interview I did with a number of other filmmakers for Kelly Benz at NSI/Shorts Report.

Link to the right....

Check out the Facebook Fan page for fun new info about 'ninety-one'.

Hello - new post reading patient people!

2010-06-23T16:21:00.000-07:00

Lots to update - most importantly we have been accepted into 2 not 1 but 2 new film festivals and they are good ones at that. Thank you programmers for seeing our film for it's true self.

July 20 and 22nd 'ninety-one' will screen at the 2010 Indianapolis International Film Festival. We are screening with a group of films under the shorts program 'The Kid Stays In The Picture'.

I was recently in Indianapolis for the Indy 500 (my friend Alex Tagliani qualified for the race in 6th position and finished the grueling race in 10th - congrats). While there I had the chance to meet Lisa Trifone the programmer for the festival and a very nice, film loving girl. She told me a little about the festival - we screen at a great venue, IMA - Indianapolis Museum of Art. Awesome. It's going to be fun. Those of you who know me, know I like car racing and have dabbled in that field through television. So I am hoping that some of my friends in the racing car industry might be able to come out for the screenings.

The second film festival we are screening at is the 2010 Flickers: Rhode Island International Film Festival. I don't have an exact date yet but it will be sometime in mid August. I screened at RIIFF with my first film 'moment'. It was one of the best festivals I attended during that film's festival run. It is well run, friendly, supportive and takes place in the beautiful town of Providence. I will look forward to going back.

Last week I had a fellow filmmaker Kellie Anne Benz approach me to be a part of an article she was writing for her regular column on the NSI (National Screen Institute) website and for the newsletter. Kellie writes about short filmmaking and has a blog called The Shorts Report along with her NSI column. Today she sent me the link to Part One of the article. I will post the link to this article and the festivals but you will be find them one the right side of the blog if the links don't work in this post.
(I know, I know I have to figure this linking stuff out....)

http://www.indyfilmfest.org/index.php

http://www.film-festival.org/index07A.htm

http://www.nsi-canada.ca/lessons_from_5_canadian_filmmakers.aspx

The final bit of good news.....some of you many know that I have been working on my third short film 'Little Larry'. We have been in a holding pattern going on 3 months all because I have been searching high and low for the perfect song. We, I had the perfect song but it was one that was WAY too expensive! So in lieu of that song, I and a team of great people helped me look. We either tried to compose something or searched everywhere for an already existing song that fit the bill. Well the search is over!! We now have a song that isn't going to break the bank and works wonderfully. Yippee! I am so ready and excited to be finishing this comedy film up.

Till next time - Jill

And finally.....

2010-05-25T18:01:00.001-07:00

Here are my two last pics from NBFF.
They are from the great cocktail party that was thrown on the last day of the festival around sunset at the Mayor's house over looking the marina. In fact all the photos of the my filmmakers friends (below) were also taken at the party. One is taken from the inside looking out over the party and the other is the view we saw just out through the windows. A beautiful night and a really nice way to connect with people and end the festival.

So a couple last things....stay tuned to this spot for some exciting news very soon.

And for some great new now so you don't have to wait the women's cancer PSA music video I directed (see link on the right) reached 11,000 hits on YouTube today - Yay!

Thanks everyone!

Fellow NBFF Filmmakers

2010-05-25T17:42:00.000-07:00

Many a good conversation was had with these fine folks as well as films shared. That is definitely one of the best perks of attending a festivals - meeting other filmmakers!

Lilli Birdsell (Once Upon a Crime) and Nicolas Simonin (Derailed (Eric))

Kelly Strodl (NBFF's social media girl) and Josh Pomer (The Westsiders)

David Orr (Refresh)

Filmmakers Lounge at NBFF

2010-05-25T15:53:00.000-07:00

Here is the local hangout for the attending filmmakers and press. It was a really nice set up. You could grab a snack, chat with the friendly staff, meet and mingle with filmmakers, maybe convince somebody from the press to come to your screening or better yet give your film a plug. They also had a really great set up where if you couldn't make it to screening you could watch almost any film that was being shown at the festival on 7 individual screens they had set up.

I need a tutorial...

2010-05-25T15:40:00.000-07:00

Ok...so I am once again long over due on my update from Newport.
The photos I just uploaded in previous post represent two ends of my journey - Hollywoodland to Newport....

I just want to report right now that my photo uploading skills require some assistance - as you might have been able to tell from the title of this post. I need to figure out how to make an album and post it....help!

.....So, I stayed with friends Stef and Mike in Hollywoodland (hence the sign photo - which was taken with my favorite app toy camera) they have the sweetest bungalow. PAUSE for a little Hollywood trivia - cause what good filmmaking blog doesn't have trivia - America Ferrera lived in their bungalow before they moved in. Anyway I would make the trek down to Newport Beach for the festival. On the day of the screening Stef came with me which was great to have her there.

LA / Newport Beach Film Festival

2010-05-25T15:35:00.000-07:00

Boots Video

2010-05-07T14:50:00.001-07:00

Ok....I still owe you a final wrap up of Newport but in the meantime...
I directed a video for women's cancers about two months ago and we have just launched it on YouTube. It is a viral music video set to 'These Boots Are Made For Walking' and it's meant to inspire and get people motivated to walk, donate and pass on. So please do!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuOwXiEm_K4

If for some reason you can't click on this link I will post it to the right of this page in my links section.

Keep walking.......

World Premiere - Woo Hoo!

2010-04-28T22:38:00.000-07:00

So....it has come and gone and it was great!! Yesterday afternoon to an audience of about 70 people we screened 'ninety-one'. We screened in front of the feature film Drawing with Chalk (about following your dreams no matter the age), a nice pairing.
The Q & A went well - we talked about drawing from personal experiences to make our films, the hardest part of filmmaking, our backgrounds and intentions. I will post a YouTube link soon. After I had a number of people come up to me to express how moved they were by the film and how much they enjoyed it. It was a great feeling to have complete strangers come and search me out to tell me what the film meant to them. In fact today I got an email from a fellow filmmaker David Orr whose film Refresh also screened at NBFF - he said that he was still thinking about the film and it's images today. Nice.

Tomorrow is the last day of the festival...will post a wrap up. Until then...

Thanks for all the support everyone!!
xo

Made It!!

2010-04-27T11:34:00.000-07:00

I finally made it - Phew! After a hellish day of travel starting at 5:15am east coast time I made it to Newport Beach at 8:45pm west coast time - the rest you can just imagine.

I met Leslie Feibleman and Dennis Baker two if the very fine programmers here at the festival. Met a few filmmakers and FINALLY met Frank Kelly. He is the brains behind '140' the doc that had it's very popular screening on the 23rd and film that I am proud to say I am a part of. Also got to hook up with Elliot Kotek a co=producer of 'ninety-one' and editor of Moving Pictures Magazine and most importantly good friend...it had been a while TIFF last year so all in all off to a great start.

I will be twittering through out the festival and posting some pics when I can so check out the link to twitter on this page to the right.

Made to my friends Stef and Mike's house at 2am....they are super great for hosting me and I am very lucky to have such a great place to stay.

Anyway....today is the big day!! Screening at 3pm....wish me/us luck - will report back soon!!

Till then..............

Newport Beach Here I Come!!

2010-04-22T13:47:00.000-07:00

So...very early this morning I hopped a plane for Washington DC - a short little pit stop on my way to Newport Beach for the festival.

We are celebrating not only my Uncles Big Birthday and a good excuse for a family reunion with all my relatives from the other side of the pond but we are also celebrating the article I wrote about 'ninety-one'. Today on the Moving Pictures Magazine website they published an article I was asked to write about my film and the experience of making it and films in general.

There is a link to the right hand side of the page under blog archives.

And with that I am off to take a little nap so I am ready for the craziness that is about to begin!!

A Shout Out!

2010-04-15T08:12:00.000-07:00

Our first media mention.....yay!

http://theshortsreport.blogspot.com/

Kellie is a filmmaker, writer, blogger (the shorts report) and member of the NSI team.
She is based in Vancouver and has her finger on the pulse of the short world, especially when it come to Canadians. Thanks Kellie.

Newport Beach has officially received the film - good. Elliot has received the ninety-one buttons. He says they look great!! Phew.
I have been emailing press etc...like a banshee trying to get people to take notice of our film at Newport and give a mention. It has worked a little so far - keep 'em coming.

I am still looking for the right song for my new short Little Larry as we have a Wolfmother song in the edit right now that is perfect but way too rich for our blood unless someone wanted to be very kind and help us out. Until that happens - we/I am looking....

Tonight will be fun....screening the PSA for women's cancers to all those who were in it and worked on it. I am looking forward to showing them what a great job they did and how wonderful it turned out. We will soon be sending it out into the viral universe. Keep watching your inbox.

Ok....so off to try and get some more ink for ninety-one - wish me luck!

Press Kit Done!!

2010-04-13T07:00:00.001-07:00

Here we go, the poster. Nice huh?!
I have finally gotten the press kit done, the 'ninety-one' buttons have arrived in LA for Elliot to give out before I get there. The film has been sent off and NBFF will be able to make sure all is in order....we are on our way people!! Now to make sure we have bums in seats....

YouTube......

2010-04-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

Just posted the 'ninety-one' trailer to YouTube....check it out!!
Look to the right of this page and click on the link to the trailer in the links section.

Time for a quick one...

2010-04-09T07:32:00.001-07:00

Hey.
So many things have been spinning these days in a great way! I am almost finished making and gathering the promo stuff for 'ninety-one'....posters, postcards, pins, a fan page. I will put a link to the fan page here. And the cherry - a trailer - it will be posted here as well...
So a very quick update....gotta run, finish the press kit and ship off the film to Newport today.
Back soon.........
Jill

WOOO HOOO!!!

2010-03-21T18:13:00.000-07:00

Finally some GREAT news....'Ninety-one' has been accepted into it's first festival. We will be premiering at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California. It is in it's 11th year and runs April 22nd to the 29th. I am really excited to be screening at this festival because my friend, collaborator and co-producer of this film, Elliot V. Kotek has been a guest speaker at this festival on a number of occasions. He speaks very highly of Newport and this year he is helping them program a spotlight on Australia - his native country.

NBFF will be a unique experience as in a way both Elliot and I will have two films screening there - 'Ninety-one' and the documentry'140'. We both contributed a segment to '140' (you will find a link to the 140 film blog on this site) a film that was conceived by filmmaker Frank Kelly which gathered 140 filmmakers from around the world through twitter - to film 140 seconds at the same time on the same day. I have yet to see the film but from what I am told it is quiet emotional so I can't wait. It's gonna be one hell of a festival!!

Other good things have been happening....I have locked picture on my new short (which Elliot wrote) 'Little Larry'. I am heading in to do the color correct on Tuesday....then finish up the music and sound mix. The response so far from vetting has been very positive so I am looking forward to sharing the finished film with everyone.

I wrapped up shooting 'Score: A Hockey Musical'....shadowing Mike was great and the film was a blast to work on!! The whole entire cast and crew are so excited to see the finished product. I am going to continue my shadowing - head into the edit etc...Look out for it coming to a theater near you in October.

The book option that Avi and I were working on fell through which is really disappointing as I know I could have (we could have) made a really great film. However it was not to be so we are back looking and I am back writing. I have been thinking a lot about this one idea and am going to start writing this week!

I shot a PSA for The Princess Margaret's Weekend Walk to End Women's Cancers the weekend before we wrapped Score. It is a music video (kind of a Glee like number minus the big production value but with a lot of heart) set to "These Boots Are Made For Walking". We are going viral with it in the next couple of weeks. It was a ton of fun to shoot and very inspirational. The people I have met on this project really make you think about how lucky you are and remind you that you have to live each moment. I am excited to see where we can take this and to raise a ton of awareness not just for women's cancers but cancer in general. I am sure these days you would be hard pressed to find someone who has not been touched by this disease.

So them mammoth long over due update....till the next one....and one of the days I will figure out how to upload an album of photos and post 'em. Stay tuned.

Look Who's back......

2010-01-19T17:45:00.000-08:00

Well, well, well.....it has been far too long. I have felt kinda stuck as I unfortunately don't have much new to report on 'ninety-one'. However I have now decided - to heck with it - I will just talk in general about my projects and leave it all under the same banner. I did start this blog for 'ninety-one' but to also share my thoughts and experiences of film-making.

So....here is the update.

I am still submitting 'ninety-one' - the response from all who have seen the film has been wonderful and I know that once we get that first festival things will take off from there...so come on!

The 'day job' got in the way a little....Copper (tune in ABC/Global in March). That did not put a damper on progress - I shot a new short called 'Little Larry'. I am just editing with Kyle right now. It was written by a friend of mine Elliot Kotek whom I met at the Bahamas International Film Festival when 'moment' was screening there. Elliot is a multi-talented guy - writer, artist, actor....really there is nothing he can't do. He has recently renewed his post at Moving Pictures Magazine as Editor-at-Large and has a website/blog called NoA - The Nation Of Artists -http://social.thenationofartists.com/. My plug for Elliot.

'Little Larry' is a comedy of sorts. The main character Larry was originally a boy but in my version - with a little effort - I convinced Elliot to let me turn Larry into a girl. Her name though has remained Larry. Kyle and I are now sending out the cut to a select group of people for vetting. We will be waiting patiently to hear back...

Even better news is that I have hooked up with a new producer. Tired of doing it a lot of it myself. Although I have had invaluable help on my films to date I needed to find someone to help me kick it up a notch and take it to the next level. So I have teamed up with Avi Federgreen. Avi has worked his way up through the industry to finally land on top if the indie producer pile in Canada. He had three films at TIFF this year - Leslie My Name Is Evil, High Life (I saw it last weekend as it opened in limited release - a must see!) and Hungry Hills. So Avi and I are looking for projects and are in the process of optioning a novel so we can make my first feature film together! I have told him that by September 2012 I want to have made a feature....I (we) am doing my best to make that happen!

Last but not least....I am shadowing Mike McGowan on his new film 'Score: A Hockey Musical'. We go to camera in a week and at that point I will be taking on the script supervising duties as well as shadowing. We have been in prep for the last 3 weeks and it has been a crazy ride - locations, casting, singing - the list goes on. I am having fun and learning some interesting things. I excited to start shooting. Avi is producing with Mike. I worked with Mike a few years back on his very sweet film 'Saint Ralph'. He is a great filmmaker and a really nice person.

I am also working on setting up an official Staggerdwheel website. So you will finally be able to find all info pertaining to my projects in one place. Yes - I am moving into the world of grown-up presentation.

Best get back to wrapping up this edit session.

Later.

September already!?

2009-09-08T10:50:00.000-07:00

Say it's not so....where has the time gone??

My show has been keeping me super busy but in between I am trying to find the time to get stuff done with 'ninety-one' among other things.

The biggest news is that I finally got a chance to host a cast and crew screening and it was a huge success!! It seems, I am very happy to report, that people really liked the film. They were moved by it, had questions about it and were taken enough by these 5 characters to ask for more. Everyone is asking about a feature. I am not sure it gets better than that!! So thank you everyone - for coming out in support!

I am still waiting on festivals but you know how that game goes.....

In the mean time I have a hiatus this week and I am away writing.... procrastinating?...no writing! It is the first time I have left the city to write and I think it is a really good thing for me....well so far anyway.

I promise there will be more to come.....
Jill

The waiting game.

2009-07-04T08:43:00.000-07:00

Well - the waiting game is the name of the game. So far I have made about 9 submissions to festivals. So fingers crossed!

Over the Canada Day weekend (ok mid-week) get-a-way to Ottawa we screened 'ninety-one' for a small group of friends and family. We wanted to say thank you for the support. Sylvie (exc-producer) and Suesan (co-writer/co-producer) hosted the party at Suesan's house. It was a really nice evening - full of well wishes, love and support. The response to the film was terrific! One of the attendees was Tom Shoebridge (friend of Suesan's - his daughter is a filmmaker as well). Tom founded the film school: Canadian Screen Training Centre - now in it's 28th year. I had just met Tom that evening and he is a lovely man and he gave 'ninety-one' two thumbs up so, you know, pretty pleased with that one. All of this makes me even more curious to see how the festivals will receive it.

In the mean time it is back to more submissions, getting more of the press-kit stuff together, finding a place and time to finally host my cast and crew screening, sending off my clip to Frank for the 140 project, developing a stage play, thinking about shooting a short with script I didn't write, getting down to writing one (or all) of the 3 features I am working on and finally on to a 'day' job. I am starting work on a new TV show next week - Copper - a Grey's Anatomy for cops. You will find it in the future on Global in Canada and ABC in the US.

I think I have my work cut out for me - so I better get cracking! Later......

Yippie - It's Done!!

2009-06-09T19:22:00.001-07:00

Brendan Wall (Ben) and
Shauna MacDonald (Simone) hard at work.

So I just had a family gathering over an extended long weekend....But now I am back and even better - so is the film. I am pleased to announce that 'ninety-one' is now complete and I have already made a few submissions to some film festivals.

These photos are from the week before, the sound mix and the tiny little bit of ADR we had to do. I never did ADR on my last film so it was interesting and fun, especially since we didn't have the pressure of having a lot to do. Not to mention some of the dialogue was off screen so that also made it easier. I am still learning about sound mixes but I feel like I am continuing to grow which is great.

You know it's funny - almost everyone working on this project in the post end of things has at some point pushed the film towards the more serious or heavy side and I have fought them on it - feeling like the story and performances will carry the audience where they are supposed to be. Again it all comes back to trusting the story you have told and the film you have made.

I am really excited to see what happens to 'ninety-one' and am very proud of the results. All the hard work that everyone has put into making this film possible has been fantastic. Thank you.

Over the weekend I showed the film to my mother and I was touched by her reaction. When you finally see the film you will understand.

So it is on to a new stage - wish us luck with the festival submissions and stay tuned to this spot for updates! xo

Round two.

2009-05-18T16:22:00.000-07:00

Well last week was a big learning curve for me. The most important thing I took away was to 'know your film' and 'trust you that you know your film'.

This end of production...the post end with color corrects and sound mixes, as I have mentioned is the area I am not as familiar with, so help and guidance was what I needed. I had my color correct session and through a series of conversations, suggestions and compromises found myself when I left unsure of what we had done. It did not feel right. Now it is not anyone's fault and we were all there to do what we thought was best - agendas can sometimes be different. With that said though I found that after sleeping on it and showing the results of the session to someone close to the film I trusted I realized I had some changes to make. I know I did the right thing. It looks and feels right now and I am really happy with the end result.

So let my lesson be a lesson to all of you out there feeling the pressure of making important decisions regarding your film. You have lived with the film longer then anyone else. At times that can be a bad thing as it might be hard to have perspective but it can also make the difference in situations like these. I learned that sometimes no matter what you have talked about - pulled and selected for reference before making your film - in color palette or what have you - when all is said and done, what does the film you actually shot and edited say to you. Does where you thought you were in the beginning really hold true when you are done? I found that 'Ninety-one' become its own being irrespective of what intentions I had for it. That is not to say that I didn't make the film I set out to make it is just to say that it is now it's own life force and speaks to me from that point.

Thank you to those who indulged me last week, I really took a lot with me.

So bring on the this new one. I am ready!

Brand New Day

2009-05-10T19:01:00.000-07:00

So tomorrow starts a whole new part of post. We have final picture cut and we are locking it in the morning. I'm very happy - looking good! This week we start the color correct, sound mix and all the things that will come and go in between.

On Friday I vetted the cut at School (edit company) with Chris (my editor) - Kyle (asst. editor). Kyle rallied a couple of people who had no connection to the film or even knew anything about it. The response was great. A huge sigh of relief. It is always good to vet the cuts as you go along so it is not just you and your editor thinking you are done or that it's working. Hopefully the people you ask will be honest with you.

Music is still not nailed down so I will continue to work on the with the gang that is helping me.

I am really looking forward to getting on to the next stage. It is the part of post production that I know the least about and have the most to learn from. So it is going to be challenging but also really interesting. I will definitely be relying on the experts to help me out.

Two weeks and we should be done!

Mine that Bird

2009-05-07T20:54:00.000-07:00

As you may have guessed from my headline.....were are almost at the finish line of picture lock! In fact I am at my editors right now pulling a late one. This is my editor - Chris. I am getting excited! Looking forward to the next stage of post.

Also some things that have been a little tricky finally look like they may be falling into place....like music. We found a great song.

Tonight I may have also secured and amazing graphic designer to help with posters and such. All is happy in Jill's film world.

Keep the blood flowing.

2009-04-23T22:28:00.000-07:00

I almost gave my editor a heart attack today. I didn't mean to...an innocent comment to give him something to think about while I was out snapping photos to maybe use as a back drop of my title card. Chris is over worked and over tired - definitely burning the candle at both ends. The fact is, this puppy has been in need of an edit for a while - but timing is everything, so they say and some of us work better under pressure so here we are. Under pressure.

The music was leaving something to be desired - not in the fact that is was bad but more that it just wasn't working with the picture. Here I was thinking....oh - it went so smoothly last time I don't need a music supervisor just get myself a composer and away we go. Wrong. So guess what I have now.

I am still not sure the deadline will be made with the changes we have had to incur this week but we are working diligently - so we will see where we get and hope for the best!!

Money

2009-04-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking that money gives you freedom. It's not that you can't do it without money obviously you can but in the end it just offers you more options and allows for more opportunity. I am not talking about a lot of money but when you have none (for argument sake) something more than that is helpful. But these, once again, are the challenges facing filmmakers and in the end where there is a will there is a way. It really forces you focus in on what is important and think about creative ways to get around something. My two cents for the day.

This is a hard one...the edit, the music, the look - getting it just right. Probably one of the most challenging things I have had to face in this business. With that said it is challenging in the best of ways and one I certainly up for!

I'm nine days out from the first official deadline in post and progress is being made although not fast enough for my liking (will it ever?) but things are moving forward and in the right direction so - good!

UGH!!!!!!!!

2009-04-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

Deadlines are fast approaching and trying to make everyone come together on the same schedule is VERY tricky!! Especially tricky when people are helping you out and doing something pro-bono. Obviously when you are making films on ultra low budgets these are some of the problems you face. Love 'em and hate 'em but can't live without them!
Keep your fingers crossed and do a little dance for me - that's what I am doing.......

2009-04-08T17:43:00.000-07:00

Photos from the childhood memory portion of the film.....including the one in the post below.

Sunny Vancouver?

2009-04-08T17:25:00.000-07:00

Ok so it's a little longer than I thought but today is the day that I post some photos so that has to be worth something?!

I am out in Vancouver - over the weekend I attended a wedding of a friend. She and her now husband and yours truly met on a film we all worked on that was shot in Toronto and Cologne, Germany - now 3 years later they have done it!! It was a beautiful weekend in Cultus Lake - many cocktails and one beautiful day.
I am hanging out here a little longer and then back to T.O. But don't think that doesn't mean I am not working away on 'Ninety-one'.

We have FINALLY started editing and some of the scenes we have cut are looking great!! But we do have our work cut out for us. As I thought this is definitely one where the editor is so important! I have also met with the composers and they have started the process. I am excited - I feel like we are all on the same page - which is nice. I am getting post production schedules together and have managed to get an extension on submitting the film to Toronto International Film Festival but the new deadline is so tight I have my fingers crossed we will make it.

So...a brief update....more to follow but pics are on the way!

Too Long......stay tuned.

2009-02-24T18:25:00.000-08:00

Oh my gosh....I have been totally delinquent!! I'm sorry.

Aside from finishing the 'shooting portion' of the production of Ninety-one I started a "paying" gig. I promise I will write and post some photos this weekend.....

Things are moving forward...slowly but surely!

Jill

Ready to roll.....

2009-01-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

Ok so who knew so much could happen in a few days......
Back up arrived (Suesan- phew).I have had a few major and minor heart attacks starting with losing an actor then thankfully gaining a great actor in their place. Hemorrhaging cash. Feeling excited, worried, nervous, happy. Amazed and thankful that great people are giving of their time. Hating our actors union who have made things very difficult. (now I finally get what so many people complain about). Realizing that whether you have $5 or $20 million the problems are the same - the difference is you just have more money to throw at them.

First day tomorrow....my AD has planned a good schedule...easing us into our 2nd day which will be a little more challenging but good.

Anyway off to bed...got to get up early - 7am at the location.
Wish us luck!!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T11:00:00.000-08:00

So we are officially in 2009 and exactly 7 days from rolling film. Yes we are going old school baby - S16mm all the way.

So much has happened since I last posted....I must confess with everything that has to be done I get a little distracted from posting and get myself wrapped up in other things. No matter.

A week or so before Christmas I had what was to be my last casting session..... Also as an aside let my lesson be a lesson to all of you out there.....never make your shoot dates of your film just after Christmas and New Year. I clearly was not thinking when I thought that I wanted to get this in the can before everyone got busy on other things or began to feel like they were unable to help out because they worried about what paying job was or was not coming down the pipe. But now I realize I should have made it a week later as what has now become very apparent is that no one is back to work until the 5th which is 3 days from rolling cameras.....but I digress and really I KNOW it will all work out as so far so good. Sometimes you just have to bite the proverbial bullet and go for it. Things always work out some way some how...that I do believe.

So back to casting.....it is hard....or for this I found it hard. My first film seemed so easy in comparison. There are so many factors that come into how you get your cast and it is such a crucial part of making your film great...really half the battle is have a great cast. Having what you feel are the right people to bring your people to life. It is hard to have confidence in your choices sometimes but I think gut is important. It also doesn't hurt to have a second set of eyes and ears that you trust to turn to. With all of that said I think I've done it. Working with the actors union and with the agents has been frustrating at times but interesting. I have certainly gained much more insight into how the system can work both for you and against you.

I also now have a really great Line Producer on board - David. He has been a god send!! He has freed me up to think about what I need to think about which is directing. My girl friend/best friend and co-writer Suesan lives out of town so she has not been able to help out as much as she would have liked to so a lot has fallen into my lap. Which is all fine and good but film is a collaboration and we can sometimes get swept up in our own shit and not look for help. At the urging of my very diligent and wonderful 1st AD Chi (he did 'moment' as well) I finally was able to find some to share the work load. Of course all of the amazing people I have been able to enlist are going to be called upon more and more now that we are days away.

I have been discussing the look I want with my DP John - we continue exchange ideas and references. It is always interesting.

I feel very lucky to be able to have the cast and crew I have not to mention the support I have had and continue to have from friends, family, investors and work colleagues.

The last big story of the week is - I found our second location. It's going to work really well and they were very kind to give it to me for a great rate!

Things are falling into place....wish me luck as we head into the last week of production - Suesan's arrival to lend a helping hand and be my second set of eyes and ears, nailing down the last few crew members, putting all the things we talked about in our art department meeting yesterday into action, finalizing the cast and equipment, tech scouting, production meeting, wardrobe meetings/fittings, hair/make-up meetings, camera tests, cast readthru/rehearsal.....you get the idea.

I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2009!
Jill

Welcome!

2008-12-16T07:42:00.000-08:00

Okay so I am taking the leap into the blogging world.....not exactly sure how this is going to work but I thought it would be fun to try something new. Well new for me.
My name is Jill Carter and I am directing and producing a short film called 'Ninety-one'.

Here is the synopsis:

“There are three sides to every story: your side, my side and the truth and no one is lying. Memories shared serve each differently.” Robert Evans, producer

Five longtime friends share moments from their childhood - one part magical, one part comical, sometimes heartbreaking and sometimes tragic. Is what they remember real or imagined? Are they images plucked from the recesses of their minds or planted by stories and photographs? When challenged to close their eyes and think of themselves as the smallest child they can remember being, what do they see? And what does it tell us about who they are now?

Basically, I thought I like to hear and read about other filmmakers experiences - how much fun they had, the challenges they faced, things they learned about themselves and about the process of making their film(s). So maybe someone out there would like to hear the same from me.

So welcome, enjoy, read away and come back!